As 30 Rock airs series finale tonight I ask: Was it too smart for a huge audience?

In the beginning, TV critics underestimated 30 Rock, choosing to focus instead on another TV show debuting at the same time on the same channel: Oscar-winner Aaron Sorkin's Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.

But it turns out Fey's oddball comedy about a hapless TV producer managing a band of misfits to put on truly weird television comedy show was the concept with legs, lasting seven seasons before calling it a series with a one-hour final at 8 tonight.

Fey, as it turns out, had a relentless drive to be funny and fresh, hidden by her unassuming manner and self-deprecating humor as put-upon executive producer Liz Lemon. We underestimated a comedy legend who had already revolutionized SNL and she let us, probably because a sneak attack works better.

But 30 Rock also has a less impressive legacy: Helping create the critically acclaimed, low-viewer style of smart TV comedy which has nearly erased the legacy of NBC’s Must-See TV franchise.

Critics like me love the show’s lightning-fast pace, whip smart pop culture references and unexpected cameos (who else could welcome a list of guest stars unlikely as Elaine Stritch, Jon Bon Jovi, Condoleezza Rice and Sorkin himself?). And the industry loves them too, handing the show a raft of Emmys, Golden Globes, SAG awards, honors from the Television Critics association and a Peabody award.

But the ratings haven’t followed. Last year’s season finale drew 2.8 million people; ranked 130th out of 195 network TV shows in the 2011-12 TV season.

And there’s a line of similarly low-rated, critically-beloved NBC shows right behind them, including Community, Up All Night and the showcase for Fey’s former SNL partner-in-crime Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation.

I pulled together a piece for NPR about these ideas, which has drawn complaints from Big Bang Theory fans (because I suggested the show was a broader, "less smart" comedy) and 30 rock fans (who don't like the show getting blamed for the death of Must-See TV).

About the blog

The Feed is your source for television news, reviews and commentary. A group of Tampa Bay Times writers will blog about everything from their current TV obsessions to the changing TV/media landscape (binge-watching galore!). Let's all geek out over our favorite shows together.

As a wee TV fanatic, Times pop music critic Sean Daly first learned to tell time via Lee Majors classic "The Six Million Dollar Man." On family trips, instead of asking "Are we there yet?" he would inquire of his parents: "How many more Six's?" Thus, the concept of an hour. Adorable, right? Not nearly as cute: An adult Sean wears a Tigers hat not to support Detroit but because Tom Selleck wore one on "Magnum, P.I." It's sad really.

Michelle Stark is a Times writer, editor, designer and unabashed TV nerd. Her millennial TV-watching habits rely on Netflix, Hulu and Amazon instead of traditional cable, but she never misses her favorite shows, which include everything from Girls, Parenthood and New Girl to high-minded dramas like Mad Men and Homeland. She never met a reality dance show competition she didn’t like.

Sharon Kennedy Wynne is a Times writer and editor part of that first generation of toddlers raised on Sesame Street. Her TV tastes are eclectic. She's still a big fan of Sesame Street, but also darker fare like American Horror Story and Scandal. As our resident reality TV fan (though she's ashamed to admit it), she has complex theories on Survivor, Amazing Race and Big Brother strategies.